You must be referring to the above photo taken in Game 5. Yes for short walking distance and during his work-out, Yao Ming could do away with his crutches and the protective boot. But for longer walking distance, for precaution purpose, he still wears it.
because his career may not have a better chance advancing past the first round than this series? you never know. look at tmac...
impossible. it's NOT yao's decision. it IS a DOCTOR decision. w/o green light from doctor, no player will be allowed to play. yao just repeated what the doctor said in many news conferences.
Yao should be ready for the Olympics. I hope this is his last season with the Olympic team for China and that he retires from the qualifying team as well.
man, if you rush Yao back you better get a LOT further than the first round. dont risk yao's career just to get outta the first round. that's stupid
Its always been a "dream" of mine that this happens: (Imagine watching this like a movie) We're in a knock down, drag out playoff series.......... Its game 7....... Yao is obviously gone with an injury, and we're getting beaten up bad on the inside...... The game is close and we have a miracle of a chance to pull it out, when...... Mandry pulls a hammy and Motumbo's spent, as is the rest of our bench....... It seems all hope is lost.......... Then............ (Cue the ominous drums of the intro to Rock and Roll 2 by Gary Glitter) All of a sudden the camera pans to the floor of the Rockets bench and out of nowhere to giant feet step in........the camera pans up..........ITS HAKEEM OLAJUWON WITH AN "I MEAN BUSINESS" LOOK ON HIS FACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then of course Hakeem goes on to dominate the opposing teams big men like he did David Robinson in the WCF.
Ha. I was laughing out loud at the idea of Yao being put in the game just to lay down the smash on Kirilenko, to show him what a real foul is like. Kirilenko might break into three pieces though. Yao says: It's clobbering time!
Dude I was being serious. Kirilenko needs to be taught a "lesson." Then we'll see if he will keep trying to play dirty (aka wrapping Tmac's arms up).
if stern allowed garnett to not be suspended for all the crap he pulled for the sake of ratings and $$$ imagine if he was told that he would get a huge share of the china market back by allowing Yao to play? You think he wouldnt somehow find a way to allow that to happen? He would, Stern wants to keep the integrity of the game yes, but he wants to make money first and foremost. I highly doubt Yao will play or anything but I do think it would send a great message to the team and inspire the team if he was in warmups and not street clothes for the game tomorrow night. Put Harris or Novak on the injured list for one game. Plus at different parts of the game take his warmups off to act like he is checking in (just before a timeout) and then walk back to the bench just to F with minds of the jazz players, coaches and fans.
Being not on the playoff roster is NOT the issue. NBA rule has changed that any player can be added to the roster right before next game (?) The issue is physically Yao Ming is not ready yet, as he could not walk and run and jump. You don't want to play him for 10 ~ 15 minutes, as that would mean you play 4 versus 5 in those 10 ~ 15 minutes, and that would be suicidal to the team in an evenly match-up game.
This thread makes me mad. It's essentially insinuating that Yao Ming could play he just doesn't want to. Yao Ming is a fierce competitor. He wants to be out there playing. If he could play, he'd be playing. I can't believe anybody would question that.
There's also slight hint of sarcasm involved with this thread (by "slight" I mean most sarcastic). Hence the "taking out Kirilenko with a face plant" part. I never bashed or sayed anything bad about Yao, and fyi, I've always supported Yao's decision to rest his body for the Olympics. But still, I get a laugh out of people like you and Pruyen who are over-react when it comes to Yao. Trust me, I don't want an onslaught of flame from all the Chinese supporters her So I digress, don't take this too seriously. Even I know that theres a -40% possibility that Yao will play unless we somehow get to the Finals, so I'm certainly not holding my breath for any "surprise" returns.
I don't think I'm over-reacting, I don't see any sarcasm in your opening post, and I don't think you get this whole issue right. The decison of taking the surgery and not playing again for the Rockets for the season has nothing to do with resting his body for the Olympics. Whether there is the Olympics or not, he can't play on with this stress fracture in his left ankle/foot, unless you want the fracture aggravated and Yao Ming has his bone or ligament broken.
Pruyen I've always appreciated your work and fervent admiration for Yao Ming, but calling me out lost is unnecessary. Sigh....I guess I have to explain it to you again.... Okay, first of all, I did candidly asked this question because I hadn't checked on his condition beforehand. Of course, I had already expected what the answer(s) was going to be, so I went ahead and made a joke out of it. Comprende? Hence (once again), the "face-plant" part. I guess what I'm saying is that I REALLY REALLY HATE THE JAZZ, ESPECIALLY KIRILENKO (don't even get me started) and that I really really miss Yao, which should please you Mr. Pruyen
